274 The Fourth Force

Never had Will expected to hear these words from Adelda, but he knew they had nothing to do with relationships or the like.

Will only took a few seconds to scan the group and got off the bed he had been on. He patted himself down and nodded solemnly. No matter how cheeky he was, he was still intimidated by the line up before him.

"Before I explain what's happening, first I need to explain who they are. These are important people from four powerful forces."

Adelda looked at Hercules and co and said, "You already know Prince Hercules of Mt. Olympus. Zeus' current inheritor. A god of battle, power and heroes. Beside him is Odysseus, a god of strategy, archery, civilization and tactical warfare."

Adelda turned her attention to the other side of the room and continued, "This is Princess Athena, goddess of wisdom and war, and beside her is Prince Narcissus, god of beauty, pride hunting. These four are representing Mt. Olympus."

Will was stunned by the revelation of Odysseus' identity. Will appreciated strategists a lot. He was not gifted in that field, but nevertheless, he was obsessed with the concept of scheming, this was why he had caught the attention of Athena. With her assistance and the help of other deities, Odysseus was able to carve a great name for himself. Not only that, but Will also had a soft spot for Archery deities. Odysseus was a masterful archer, capable of slaughtering dozens of men without missing a single arrow while moving.

'So this is the mastermind behind the Trojan Horse.'

Unorthodox tactics that took advantage of people's curiosity and tactics were especially appealing to a trickster like Will. Boundless respect filled his eyes as he looked at Odysseus. After learning that the bald man was Odysseus, Will had even less of a doubt about Athena's identity.

Unfortunately, Athena herself and Narcissus were less interesting to Will. Despite their backgrounds Will barely felt anything except the reverence a mortal had towards higher beings. Their mythologies and achievements were not much to Will.

'Did this guy really fall in love with himself?'

Will was however curious regarding Narcissus. Will was intellectually narcissistic but he cared little for his own physical appearance. He always tried to understand the perspective of those that did but could never quite understand it.

"You are already familiar with King Odin. Ruler of Asgard and Sovereign of the Aesir."

Will smiled at Odin. Despite the fact that the man had literally sucked the life out of him, Will still felt grateful. Because he firmly believed that this was all to make him stronger.

Odin's mastery of magic and the science behind it was a revelation for Will, who was a complete novice in the mystic. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Odin had given Will a new found respect for mages.

'Swordsmen are still cooler, but mages are not so bad.'

Will's image of a mage was heavily influenced by western society's portrayal of old men with pointy hats and wands yelling Latin. Asian culture had heavily influenced how Will saw warriors but failed to change how Will saw magic casting. Will's mind was stubborn in this regard and refused to change his impression of what a mage was regardless of what he saw.

'I owe Odin big time, even if it's through an avatar, he still personally taught me, how many have had that privilege? Plus I can regain lifespan through methods like evolving. If I can get Earth promoted to being a Middle World, won't have to worry about my age at all. Odin have me a chance, and I'm going to use it.'

Odin saw the resolve and gratitude in Will's eyes and approved. Odin disliked those that whined about circumstances and appreciated those that could adapt and move forward.

'My efforts were not wasted. He is definitely one worth molding into a proper cultivator. I will make you into the finest Priest the Heralds have ever seen, if you can survive.'

Completely oblivious to Odin's thoughts, Adelda moved on, "Next are representatives of the House of Ha, a powerful family from the Immortal Realm. The Ha are not active within this sector, so you will not find their mythologies in your databases. But in time you will see just how great their scope of power is. They are no weaker than the Norse or the Olympians in terms of influence and strength."

Adelda gestured towards Jingsung and said, "This is Young Master Jingsung Ha, the Seventh Scion of Ha, and his loyal retainer, Lord Hou Yin god of archery, hunting and pure yang arts."

Will couldn't give two squats about the Ha, but Jingsung's use of Solitary Sword Sovereign arts forced Will to care about Jingsung. Jingsung had displayed many skills similar to Will's, so the latter had no doubt he could learn a lot from the former. Will was especially weary of Jingsung's ability to nullify his intent.

'Not to mention that weird trick that forced me to blink.'

Yet despite the many reasons why Will should have focused on Jingsung, he still only dwelled on the man for a fraction of a second. But this still paled in comparison to Will's interest in the bald man.

Plenty of deities had impressed Will with incredible feats, such as Hercules and his twelve labours or Odin's unification of the Nine Realms, but none of these quite matched up to Hou Yi's act of shooting nine suns. Will was not sure just how true that tale was, but there was no doubt that it was a feat of supreme skill.

Will was not an archer, but he heavily respected them. This was part of the reason he had recruited Duke in the first place.

Will only respect a few weapons, and bows were one of them. Although not as much as swords, Will was in love with bows and had fervently searched for stories regarding mythical archers. It was a phase of obsession Will would never forget. From Athena and Apollo in Olympus to Arjuna and Rama in Hinduism, even Ullr from Norse mythology was a target of the youth's interest. But the archer that caught Will's the most was Hou Yi.

Hou Yi's feat of shooting nine suns was the right balance if fantastical and skillful for Will. He did not have a real reason for obsessing over the archery deity besides the fact that the feat sounded cool. Just like his love for swords, this was an obsession born from a childlike curiosity.

"You are already aware of Lord Modus and I, thus there is no need to say anymore." said Adelda with a flat expression.

Will wanted to say something, but he kept his mouth shut. The auras being released by Athena and Narcissus made Will feel uncomfortable and unusually hesitant, because Adelda's last statement had brought to light a topic that had been bothering Will for a while now.

Wodin chuckled and said, "Why Adelda, you mentioned Olympus, Asgard and the House of Ha, that's three forces not four. What is the fourth force?"

Adelda was annoyed because she knew what Odin was trying to say. But before she could think of an answer, her Master spoke in a commanding force.

"I represent no clan, I have no family, and I don't even represent the system."

Everyone turned to the grinning man as he pointed to his own face.

"I am the fourth force."